Antwerp in 6 Days on a Budget (With Daily Costs)

Antwerp in 6 Days on a Budget (With Daily Costs)

Six days is enough to add a genuine day trip on top of the Antwerp classics and the free Middelheim day, without blowing the budget: Mechelen is the shortest, cheapest hop of Antwerp’s day trips, so most days here still land under €40. Shorter trip, see the 4 day or 5 day itinerary; a full week, see the 7 day version .

Book these before you go:

Day Focus Est. spend
Day 1 Old town on foot €35-42
Day 2 Diamonds and the MAS €20-30
Day 3 Printing history and Het Zuid €32-37
Day 4 Art Nouveau and the free river crossing €32-37
Day 5 The free day €15-20
Day 6 Mechelen, the cheapest day trip €30-38

Day 1: Old town on foot

Land at Antwerpen-Centraal, the “railway cathedral” itself, worth ten free minutes under its dome before you go anywhere else. Buy a De Lijn day pass for about €9 if you’ll ride more than three times today; otherwise pay per trip at €3 each. Walk Meir toward Grote Markt (20-25 minutes) or take the tram.

Grote Markt, the guild houses, and the Brabo Fountain cost nothing to see. Step into the Cathedral of Our Lady (€12 adult, €10 concession, free under 18) for Rubens’ Descent from the Cross and Elevation of the Cross altarpieces, since the Rubenshuis itself has been closed since January 2023 and won’t reopen before 2030. Lunch is a frituur cone, €3-5.

In the afternoon, Het Steen’s courtyard and rooftop viewpoint are free; skip the €7 Antwerp Story exhibit unless it’s raining. A budget bistro dinner with a Bolleke runs €20-25.

Day 1 spend: roughly €35-42, hotel not included. Verify current cathedral hours at dekathedraal.be and the Rubenshuis closure timeline at rubenshuis.be .

Day 2: Diamonds and the MAS

Start at the MAS rooftop panorama, free, a 360-degree view over the port and river. Decide on the paid galleries, €10 plus €2 for temporary exhibitions, only if the view alone doesn’t satisfy.

Walk the Diamond District respectfully and for free; much of it closes Saturdays and Jewish holidays given the neighborhood’s large Orthodox Jewish community. Want a guided angle instead? The Diamond and Jewish Quarter walking tour above runs about €45 from Centraal Station. Lunch from an Eilandje food stall, €8-10.

In the evening, a Bolleke at a real De Koninck cafe, €2.50-3.50, beats booking the interactive brewery tour if the budget’s tight.

Day 2 spend: roughly €20-30 without the tour, €65-75 with it. Check current MAS hours at mas.be .

Day 3: Printing history and Het Zuid

The Plantin-Moretus Museum, €12 (free on select Wednesdays each month, confirm the current date at museumplantinmoretus.be ), is the only museum in the world individually UNESCO-listed, holding the world’s oldest surviving printing presses.

Walk to Het Zuid, Antwerp’s quieter arts district, in the afternoon. KMSKA runs timed online entry, €12, worth booking a slot ahead rather than risking a walk-up. A casual dinner in Het Zuid runs €20-25.

Day 3 spend: roughly €32-37.

Day 4: Art Nouveau and the free river crossing

Morning: walk Cogels-Osylei in Zurenborg, free, one of Europe’s best-concentrated Art Nouveau streets, with a fraction of Brussels’ Horta House crowds.

Afternoon: MoMu, about €12, is running its Antwerp Six 40th-anniversary show through January 2027. Cross the Scheldt on the free Sint-Annatunnel or the free 24/7 Sint-Anna ferry to Linkeroever for a no-cost riverside walk; don’t try to cross by tram, since the premetro tunnel under the Scheldt is closed for renovation from May 2026 to around the end of March 2027.

Evening: dinner back in the centre runs €20-25.

Day 4 spend: roughly €32-37.

Day 5: The free day

Morning: Middelheim, Antwerp’s open-air sculpture park, is free, with contemporary sculpture scattered across parkland and no ticket booth anywhere on site.

Afternoon: Rivierenhof park is also free; pick up a supermarket picnic lunch for €6-8 instead of a sit-down meal to keep the day genuinely cheap.

Evening: a frituur dinner runs €5.

Day 5 spend: roughly €15-20, the cheapest day of the trip.

Day 6: Mechelen, the cheapest day trip

Morning: the train to Mechelen takes 17-20 minutes, the shortest and cheapest hop of Antwerp’s Belgian day trips, roughly €5-10 one-way under SNCB’s reformed fare structure (under-26 and 65-plus riders get a flat 40% off any time).

Midday: St Rumbold’s Cathedral and its carillon, plus a walk through Mechelen’s compact old town, cost little beyond a coffee. This is a genuinely small city; don’t block out more than half a day for it.

Evening: back in Antwerp for a budget dinner, €20.

Day 6 spend: roughly €30-38, including the train.

Check delijn.be for the current tram fares before you go, and see the Antwerp guide for the full list of free and cheap things this itinerary draws from.